You Found Me
by Jacalyn Hyde
Summary: A Rodolphus/Andromeda pairing set during their school years. Dealing with pureblood ideals, doubt, and family issues. REMAINING UNFINISHED. Sorry.
1. Are You Hiding Too?

Rodolphus Lestrange

I've never enjoyed parties and I've always despised my social obligations. The Black's Midsummer party is no exception. It's not that I'm awkward or anti-social, it's just that, if I had a choice, I would definitely be somewhere- _anywhere_ -else. Since I don't have a choice, I mingle, almost effortlessly disguising my resentment and networking like I was trained to.

I have a theory that social events are actually bearable if you have someone on your arm suffering along with you. My brother Rabastan is a good example of that, he's currently courting the eldest Black daughter, Bellatrix. Of course, "courting" might not be the most appropriate word. "Stalking" is more accurate, perhaps even "sleeping with." I doubt marriage is in either of their plans despite the matchmaking of her parents and ours.

I dismiss that thought process with a sigh and remind myself of the two areas to avoid: the drink table and the ballroom. Alcohol is much too tempting now and an awkward dance with some utter stranger is never appealing no matter how much I drink.

There isn't much else to do though, so I find myself wandering away from the main group of people and almost aimlessly down another hallway. I find myself in front of the library and decide that must have been a subconscious but deliberate move. The door is slightly open so I see no reason why I can't go in. Just to look around and get away from the party, just for a few minutes.

"Are you hiding too?"

The voice startles me but I keep my expression calm and turn to face its owner. "Not _hiding_ exactly." I clarify. 'Hiding' sounds pathetic. I'm _escaping_. "Just looking around the library." Now that I certainly _sound_ better, I actually look at the girl.

I've seen her at parties and school before but never actually spoken to her. She seems to be for a younger and less dark version of Bellatrix. Her hair is an almond color instead of her sister's ebony but her eyes are the same grayish black and, at first glance, she could be mistaken for Bellatrix. My observation complete, I verbally identify her, "Andromeda Black."

She giggles softly but nods. "And you're one of the Lestrange boys, aren't you? Rabastan?"

"_Rodolphus_," I correct firmly. Bastan and I are eleven months apart but everyone thinks we're twins. Anyone who actually gets to know us will see that our alarmingly different personalities should be enough difference despite our similar appearances.

"Sorry," she recoils from my annoyance. "I know how that is, everyone thinks I'm Bella. Anyway, I really am hiding. I'd appreciate if you didn't tell anyone you saw me here. It's around this time everyone gets drunk and so boldly annoying. One of my uncles tired to kiss me at Bella's last birthday party."

My eyes widen in shock despite her matter-of-fact tone. Knowing her family, it shouldn't be a surprise. I don't have a chance to reply though because the library door opens again and Andromeda disappears behind one of the bookcases. I sigh and face the newcomers. Bellatrix is with Rabastan's best friend Antonin Dolohov, side by side so it's not clear who's idea it was to come in here.

"Lestrange!" Bellatrix snaps, spotting me. "Dol and I have been looking everywhere for you… I'm _bored_!" She steps closer to me and raises her hands. She playfully slaps them against my chest like she thinks her boredom is my fault.

Dolohov sniggers for some unclear reason. _Perhaps because she called him Dol?_ I ignore him and demand, "You think your amusement is my responsibility?" That makes no sense at all. I barely know her outside of the four classes we have together.

Bellatrix giggles. "Entertain me, you always do."

I'm about to protest when Dolohov interjects, "You're drunk, Black."

"Am not," she pouts, grabbing my arm and shaking it demandingly. "Tell him… tell him I'm not drunk, Bastan."

I roll my eyes and tug my arm out of her hold. I don't care that this is her parent's party. I lose patience and snap. "Either you _are_ drunk, Bellatrix, or you're incredibly stupid… I'm _Rodolphus_."

Bellatrix looks livid at that just for a moment but then her features soften. She smirks like she thinks I'm joking. "Don't be an idiot, Lestrange. I know who you are." Before I can stop her, she leaps forward and forces her lips against mine. I'm in shock so I don't push her away immediately but that contact sobers her up almost immediately anyway.

She steps backward with her eyes and mouth open wide in surprise. "That didn't happen," she manages finally.

"I'm not gonna say a word about it to anyone," I assure her. Saying 'Bellatrix Black got drunk and kissed me because she thought I was my brother' would embarrass me even more than her.

"No. You're not _just_ going to keep it secret, Lestrange." She steps forward again, this time with a threatening expression in her eyes. "It _never happened_. I can erase it from your memory if you refuse to accept that."

"Fine," I growl resentfully.

"Good. Now where is your darling brother?" The way she giggles makes me doubt her sobriety. I shrug and she asks if I've seen her sister. I glance contemplatively for a moment at the bookcase I know Andromeda's hiding behind before I shake my head. "Tell her I'm looking for her then."

I nod to acknowledge the order then turn away. I glance over a few titles on the bookshelf, waiting for her and Dolohov to leave. When they finally do, I shake my head in disapproval and sigh, "_Unbelievable_!"

* * *

(A/N: I think I like this version of Rod better than my others. Notice the nicknames, it's important when they start using them. It'll take a few chapters to get moving but I think you'll like what I have planned. Bella fans, I apologize for that horrible first impression. You'll see why it was necessary later. REVIEWS?)


	2. In a Library

Andromeda Black

I'm crouching behind a bookcase like a child playing hide-and-seek. I don't even care how pathetic that is. It's a risk I'm willing to take in order to avoid Bella's latest "fun idea."

"Thank you," I whisper to Rodolphus, crawling out from my hiding place as soon as my sister leaves. I really thought he would have told on me. Bella has that affect on people, boys especially: she can make them give her whatever she wants.

"No problem," he nods, looking up from the book he's feigning interest in. "What do you think she wants you for anyway?"

I giggle, instantly feeling better. "Well, her boyfriend has a brother she wants to introduce me to…"

"You mean Rabastan?" His eyes narrow in confusion. "But _I'm_ his brother."

I nod. "But you noticed she wasn't thinking, didn't you?" That's a major understatement. Like everyone else in our family, alcohol makes Bella even more insane and impulsive than usual. _And it's been worse recently…_

"She doesn't really seem the type to play matchmaker," Rodolphus comments, interrupting my depressing thoughts.

"She likes the idea though. You know, the whole 'Black-Lestrange' thing." The idea actually disgusts me so I hope he doesn't ask me to elaborate further. "She said it's sad you don't have another brother we could set Cissy up with."

"Oh. I never thought of that. Two sisters, two brothers, that's, um, _interesting_."

"No, it's not," I object a little too quickly. "It's repulsive!" I realize my mistake a second too late and have to explain it. "No offence, it's not that I don't like you personally. What I mean is there's a difference between ending up with someone because you want to and because Bella says to. I get enough of that from my parents."

"Sorry." His tone isn't meek but it isn't rude either. It basically says _'fine, we don't have to talk if you don't want to.'_ I think he assumes I'm prone to random episodes of condescending bitchiness just like Bella is.

He picks up the book again. I realize he's not just _pretending_ to be interested in the subject. I amend my earlier mistake by offering to let him borrow it. It's not actually my book to loan out but it's only one of possibly five thousand books in my family's collection that is often bragged about but otherwise ignored. I doubt anyone will notice it missing.

"Thanks." He nods, closing the book so I can scan the cover.

"_Alchemy_?" I inquire. "Seriously?"

"Yeah," he blushes, just slightly, realizing the interest is uncommon. "It's interesting to me in the same way that muggles love science fiction. It's not something I'd actually attempt, but it is fascinating."

I shrug. I don't actually know much about the subject but I can take comfort in the fact that he didn't instantly go to the library's section on the Dark Arts.

"I don't kno-" I begin but I'm interrupted when the library door swings open yet again. I glare at in exasperation as if the door is to blame for all these intrusions on my hiding place. I sigh with some combination of anxiousness and annoyance when I see that it's Bellatrix again. She just left a few minutes ago! This time, Rabastan is holding her hand. It's not clear if he's leading or following her and it doesn't really matter. I don't have time to hide again so I just face them with a fake smile.

"Andy!" She smiles deviously at the same time Rabastan sends a nod in Rodolphus' direction as a silent greeting. "You and Rod," Bella continues, pointing at me and then at him. "I should get you two together sometime."

"Well," I roll my eyes. I'd laugh at her drunken mistake, but it's not actually amusing to me. "The funny thing is, we already met."

"Really? That's fantastic! We should have a double wedding."

Rabastan bursts out laughing at that and gently pushes her back against the bookcase that Rodolphus and I just stepped away from. "Maybe a double _date_ first."

I make sure everyone can see the lividness I feel expressed on my face but Rodolphus looks more embarrassed than annoyed.

"Okay," Bella says, oblivious to our disapproval. "Now could you two leave please?"

"What? Why?" I stare uncomprehendingly at my sister. Seeing her head resting dramatically on one of the shelves and Rabastan holding her waist suggestively clears it up though. "In a _library_, Bella?" I scoff disgustedly. "You have no class at all!"

"_Out_," she repeats with her usual fake sweetness, ignoring me, of course.

I sigh resentfully then wrap my hand around Rodolphus' wrist and lead him mindlessly out of the library and up a flight of stairs toward my room. The only reason I wasn't hiding there before is that it's the first place people would look for me. I let go of his wrist and slam the door closed behind us then settle into a slightly reclined position on my bed. Rodolphus stands awkwardly in the doorway so I gesture to a spot on the bed beside me. In comparison to what we almost witnessed and all the things I'm certain Bella's done with boys on her bed, I don't think it's inappropriate for Rodolphus to _sit_ on mine.

We don't have much to talk about but it would have been cruel of me to just send him back to the party, so I start the conversation with the first thing I can think of. "It's out of vanity that Bella wants to control my life. Because she's the big sister and I look so much like her. It's been like that since we were little kids."

"Bastan's kind of like that too," he nods empathetically. "What you have to do is find something that makes you different from her. My brother is a year older but we're in the same school year. When we were eleven we decided I was the smart one and he was the popular one, he's on the Quidditch team and good at social networking. I'm less sociable, but I did get twelve OWLS."

"Bella got eleven," I interject instinctively. _As if she doesn't do enough bragging on her own_. "She told me she failed Transfiguration on purpose so she wouldn't have to deal with McGonagall for NEWT year. I'm going into my OWL year when school starts again."

"Lots of studying." Rodolphus smiles in a sympathetic _'I-don't-envy-you'_ kind of way.

"I'll be okay." We nod at each other and fall into silence without anything else to say.

"Do you ever feel like you belong somewhere else?" He asks after a long three minutes of quiet. I stare at him and he looks embarassed again, like he wants to take those words back.

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"The sorting hat wanted to put me in Ravenclaw," he confesses shyly, not looking at me. "I had to say my whole family's been in Slytherin, I _had_ to go there."

"You're smart," I shrug, hiding my mental reaction. "There's nothing really wrong with Ravenclaw. I never understood why we all _have_ to be Slytherins anyway. It discourages our individuality." That's really all I can say without giving away my own secret. I don't trust him completely yet, not as much as he seems to trust me. _The hat wanted to put me in Huffelpuff._ I dismiss that thought defiantly and ask Rodolphus to tell me about alchemy so we have something else to talk about.

* * *

(A/N: Andy's usually sweeter than this, but she's obviously having a bad day. I believe twelve is the maximum number of OWLS. Barty Crouch Jr. also had twelve and, apparently, that is impressive. No, the alchemy book will not be important later. It was a little darling, that's all. Sorry about that. I'm still looking for titling suggestions: please help me. REVIEW!)


	3. We're Not Strangers

Rodolphus

I probably shouldn't be telling Andromeda as much as I am but I can't help it. She's easy to talk to and it's a relief to relate to someone who not only understands my problems, but also shares them. I talk for a couple of minutes until I realize she's not actually half as intrigued as I am in the subject.

"You're not really interested in Alchemy, are you?"

"No," she frowns, blushing slightly. "Sorry. But please do keep talking. We need to think about something other than what our siblings are up to."

_Good, she's just as disturbed as I am. Good that I'm not the only abnormal pureblood, I mean._ I obligingly change the subject, "What about your other sister?"

"Narcissa? She's thirteen, she's a good girl."

"You don't think she'll turn out like Bellatrix?" I inquire.

"I severely hope not." She tenses. "That sounded bad. I mean, I love Bella. I have to, she's my sister. But she's…"

I open my mouth to try and supply an adjective but I really can't think of anything remotely polite or helpful, so I close it.

Andromeda pouts in concentration before trying a different approach. "Remember you said you're the smart one and your brother is the popular one?" I nod. "Well, Bella's the _everything_ one. She's pretty, she's sociable, she's smart, and she's _perfect_."

I don't tell her that she sounds jealous of her sister: I _know_ she is. I don't blame her at all, it's natural. It's the reason I avoid talking about Rabastan as much as possible. People always make comparisons between us and we can't help making them for ourselves. I'm sick of living in his shadow even if he did get _half_ my number of OWLS.

"Don't think of it like that," I decide to offer some advice. "She'd definitely not perfect. For example, I'm certain _you_ know that libraries are supposed to be for intellectual purposes and not…" She rolls her eyes and I continue. "And you wouldn't kiss a total stranger, would you?"

Andromeda smirks like she thinks I'm joking but she stares at my serious expression for a few seconds and then mirrors it. "She kissed you? I mean, there was a pause and then I heard her say 'it never happened,' but I thought… Oh, _Merlin_!"

We snicker nervously, the way we'd laugh a relative's joke. But then we smile at each other to acknowledge that the situation is actually funny and appropriate and we laugh like we're old friends and like her sister's drunken promiscuity is the funniest thing ever.

Once we calm down, she smirks mischievously and leans toward me. Before I realize her intent, she gently pecks my cheek.

"Trying to prove me wrong?" I challenge, with an amused grin.

"We're not strangers," she corrects.

* * *

Andromeda and I have gotten very close over the past two weeks. Seeing each other at parties means that we can be antisocial together. I call her Andy and she calls me Roddy. That's not anything significant though, those are just the names our siblings and friends call us. I don't know exactly how to define our relationship but I want that to be a mutual decision, so, until she gives me some indication that she wants otherwise, we're just friends. Good friends.

Right now, we're at the final engagement of the summer wedding season: an arranged marriage for Victor Van Dort, who is only two years older than I am. I consider myself very fortunate that my parents haven't considered such a thing for me. Marriage isn't something I want to think about right now and when I do, I want to choose for myself.

"Hey, Roddy," Andy appears beside me suddenly, scattering my thoughts and pressing a glass of champagne into my hand. We never actually drink the stuff, but the glasses are props that serve two purposes: no one asks us why we aren't drinking and our hands are occupied so we have that excuse for not dancing.

I smile and kiss her cheek: our usual sweet but almost strictly platonic greeting.

"Did you know…" she inquires, pausing for a muffled giggle. "The bride is Victoria Everglot?" I shrug, not understanding the significance of the name. It's not like Andy to gossip anyway. Smirking, she clarifies, "They're _Victor and Victoria_."

"Oh," I nod, politely disguising my amusement. "That is kind of funny."

"It's _unfortunate_."

"Well, maybe they can use nicknames."

"Like what? Vick and Vicky?"

I snort and quickly disguise it by pretending to choke on a sip of champagne. I don't have anything particularly witty to add to the conversation so, I go with my secondary impulse: "Do you wanna dance?"

"With you?" She teases, exaggerating the assumption.

"You don't have to if you don't want to," I assure her, partially hoping she will change her mind. I might change mine, but it was my idea, so, if she agrees, I have to.

"No, _let's_."

I nod with a tiny twinge of nervousness. We set our drinks down on a nearby table. I take her hand and lead her to the ballroom. _It's perfect._

* * *

(A/N: "Oh, Merlin!" serves the same purpose as "Oh, my god!" in case you were wondering –Emma: not _that_ Merlin- Victor and Victoria are not actually OCs, they're just in the wrong fandom. The first person to tell me where they belong gets to choose which of my stories to be updated or published first. REVIEW!)


	4. Blood and Strawberries

Andromeda

"Andy?"

I've always hated that nickname. It dates back to my infancy when Bella was calling herself Trixie and decided to dub me something equally ridiculous. I respond to it but I think it's annoying and much too boyish… but, for some reason, I don't really mind when it's Roddy calling me that.

I look up from the Potions essay he's been helping me with and nod encouragingly, inviting him to continue.

"So, I was wondering…" Rodolphus begins and trails off nervously. He bites his lower lip for a moment before starting again, "There's, um… there's going to be a party at the Lestrange Estate on Saturday night. I was wondering if-"

"Of course, I'll be there," I interrupt to reassure him. I remember Bella's excitement at the invitation and her recent attempts to force me to wear one of her dresses for it. This particular party, she told me, was going to be something really special. But she neglected to inform me of the exact reason for the occasion.

Not that our families ever need a real reason to celebrate. The best example of that is our Midsummer Party. It's like, "Hey, everybody, it's _the middle of the summer_, let's get drunk and socialize!" I resent parties a lot less now than I did just a few weeks ago though. Somehow, Rodolphus makes them fun. We even danced at a few of them. Recently, any excuse to see him seems like a good one.

"Actually," he continues with more shyness than usual. "I was asking if you'd go _with me_…. Like, as a-"

"_Oh_…" I finally get it.

"You don't have to if you don't want to," he assures me quickly and nervously, mistaking my slow comprehension for uncertainty.

"No, I want to" I display a huge smile for his benefit. "I'd love to."

"Oh. Great." He nods and, after a few more seconds, he finally relaxes. He starts to ask how my essay is going but I cut him off, impulsively and somewhat senselessly thinking through my sister's relationship advice.

"We should coordinate outfits, wear the same color or something." I suggest. It sounds like a fun idea but I quickly try to retract it. "We don't _have_ to, I was just thinking…" Suddenly, I'm the nervous one.

We're both like that: we're used to someone else leading. Sharing control in this fragile early stage of our relationship is sweet but also a little nerve-wracking.

He shrugs, in an encouraging, _not_ a dismissing way. "I picked out some dress robes like this…." He flicks his wand, whispering something and playfully showering me with some midnight blue confetti that immediately vanishes when it hits my hair. "But I could find something else if-"

"Actually," I grin. "That's perfect." It must be fate that the dress Bella tried to force me into matches almost exactly.

"Blue it is, then," he agrees, returning my smile.

"Yes, _blue_…" I realize something. "Did you choose a Ravenclaw color on purpose?"

"Don't tell anyone, but _yes_. It's some very subtle rebellion." He seems rather pleased with himself. I smirk with my shared approval and mentally resolve to follow his example and buy something yellow and Huffelpuff-y for another occasion.

* * *

Bella smears black powder along my eyelids, rouge on my cheeks, and a thick layer of some expensive red gloss on my lips. Superficially, we do look alike, but, personality-wise, these colors are much better suited for her than for me. She's too preoccupied attempting to transform me into a clone of herself to care about that issue though.

I'm more than capable of styling my own hair and makeup, but, when I tried to inform Bellatrix of that fact, she threw her empty wine glass at me and said I was a horrible sister. She was just trying to be nice in her own drunken (_again_), crazy-Bella kind of way and I felt sorry for her in my own stupid, irrational-Andy kind of way, so I ended up sitting at her vanity with my back turned to the mirror, being her human doll for the evening.

Speaking of dolls, there's a collection of dozens of them of all shapes, colors, and sizes in three glass cases along the wall I'm facing. Looking at that display, it's rational to assume that Bella's very childish, but, if you knew her like I do, you'd know that none of those dolls was ever played with. Even as a little girl, she was always obsessed with perfection.

She would brush their hair and dress them but she immediately put them back on the shelf afterward. Cissy and I ruined several toys, dragging them along to play outside in the gardens with us, but Bella always spent that time catching and dismembering insects: she was a little sadistic but also strong and organized.

Right now though, I don't have an explanation for her recent alcohol abuse, laziness, and promiscuity. But it's only been over the past few weeks anyway, so I'm not letting myself worry too much.

"Done," Bella whispers sweetly. She spins my chair and finally allows me to face the mirror. She's already made-up and dressed. As soon as I change clothes, we'll be ready to go.

"I…" I stare at my reflection, my appearance is as overdramatic as I feared it would be, but I don't want to hurt her feelings. "I look…"

"Perfect," Bella supplies at the same time I mouth "ridiculous."

I lick my lips softly, failing to remove any of the gloss, but discovering that it tastes exactly like it looks: like some combination of blood and strawberries. "What do you call this color?" I ask Bella curiously.

She picks up the case and reads off it with a smile: "Rose Passion."

I shrug. _'Whore Red' might have been more appropriate._

"You really like Lestrange, don't you?" Bella asks randomly. It always annoys and confuses me that she calls both Rodolphus and Rabastan by their surname.

"I don't know," I begin uncertainly, hoping she'll just forget about it. Just because sisters are supposed to be able to talk to each other about this kind of thing doesn't mean I _want_ to share my thoughts on the sort-of relationship I have with Roddy, or that I want Bella meddling with it. If I really wanted someone to talk to, I'd go to Narcissa, which is sad because, a year ago, it would have been Bella, but we've grown apart recently.

"Well," she persists. "If you really do, tonight would be a good time to prove it."

I frown. "What do you mean 'prove it'?"

She sends me the smile usually reserved for the guests she has to be polite with. At first glance, it's just a friendly, encouraging little grin. But there's a very subtle condescending _'you're so stupid'_ message there too. "What do people usually do when they're in love?" She challenges.

"Who said anything about love?" I object a moment before I realize the other implication. "Are you honestly telling me to sleep with him?"

She ignores my protests and conjures a shot glass of fire whiskey for herself. "Well, it _is_ a special occasion, Andy."

"Yeah," I growl. "You told me that but you haven't said what the occasion _is_ yet."

She giggles, "It's a surprise."

"Would it really benefit me to not be prepared for it?" I ask sarcastically. Under my breath, I add, "Even if it would amuse you."

She rolls her eyes like she's disgusted with me. "Go put your dress on."

I stand and resentfully cross to her closet. I turn around just long enough to see her take the chair I just vacated and drain her glass.

I sigh and exchange my current casual black dress for her formal blue one. I remember it being a little too short and low-cut for my liking, but, pulling on its zipper now, I notice some obvious changes. It was knee-length before but now it barely covers halfway down my thighs and the cleavage is definitely deeper.

"Bella," I turn back to her and scowl. "Did you make some… _alterations_ to this?" She shrugs innocently then spins me around to finish the zipper.

"_Bella_?" I repeat grudgingly.

In two impossibly fast movements, she wraps her cloak around her shoulders then grabs her wand in one hand and my arm in the other and disapparates without warning or giving me a chance to grab my own cloak.

When I regain my footing and manage to catch my breath, we're standing on the front porch of the Lestrange Estate.

"Bella!" I shriek. She ignores me again and steps forward to rap on the door. "Did you hear me?" I try again. "There's no way in hell I'm wearing this! Take me home now!"

At that moment, the door opens and a house elf squeaks some barely audible greeting to us. Bella exhales in her usual '_I'm better than _you' way and drops her cloak over the elf's head, like he's nothing more than a coat rack, and pushes past him to enter.

I send a futile glare at her retreating back then gently pull her cloak off the elf's head.

"Jolly can take that for Miss Black," he protests.

I shake my head, "No, thank you." I wrap it around my shoulders, covering my back at least. My mission now is finding Rodolphus.

I search, suppressing the urge to panic until I finally locate him. He's at the top of the main staircase with his parents. He looks great as always, but he also seems like he wants to disappear. His mother and father both have a hand on his shoulders.

"Everyone," Mr. Lestrange speaks suddenly, using some kind of voice-amplifying spell to capture the attention of all the party guests. "This is Rodolphus, our second son. He's seventeen today, so let's celebrate and- "

"Father, please!" Rodolphus interrupts, so quietly that it's a wonder I hear him. "You said you wouldn't make this a big deal."

"Have a nice time," Mrs. Lestrange finishes for them. "That's all." She smiles brightly as the attention of the guests fades and Rodolphus and his father share an almost silent argument.

Finally, Roddy is released and he makes his way down the stairs in the usual proud fashion of purebloods but with a clear resentfulness in his eyes. I'm by his side in a matter of seconds. He hugs me briefly and kisses my forehead.

"Why didn't you tell me this was a birthday party?" I ask. It does explain Bella's 'special occasion' and why Roddy wanted me here but I don't really know why neither of them told me.

"Because it isn't," he answers. "It's just another reason for them to party. If it was truly a celebration in my honor, then we'd just have dinner with the family… and, maybe, you too, if you'd want to go to that sort of thing."

I nod sympathetically and switch to a happier, teasing tone. "You still should have said something, given me a chance to get you a present."

"You don't have to get me anything."

"Actually," I begin without thinking. A ridiculous and inexplicable impulse strikes me suddenly. "I do have something."

"Oh, really?"

I smile and take his hand. "Walk with me." He squeezes my hand affectionately and nods in response. "Please ignore this dress," I tell him as we walk. "It's Bella's attempt at being a good sister, guiding me down the path of sluttiness."

"Hm," he frowns. "I think the color's fine. I see what you mean though: it _is_ a little short. She shouldn't have made you wear it if you're uncomfortable. Hold on." We pause and he traces his wand a few inches in front of me and whispers a spell I haven't learned yet. New material appears and the dress repairs itself back to its original length.

"Thank you," I whisper in almost-disbelief.

"Better?"

"Yeah," I smile. "Come on."

He follows me outside to a beautiful and isolated section of one of the gardens.

"It's pretty out here." I whisper nervously. We're surrounded by roses and it's just after twilight, it's just romance-novel-perfect. He nods again and takes my other hand, taking step toward me.

"Would you kiss me?"

"I-I…" He stutters and trails off.

"Please," I insist.

He pauses for a few more seconds but finally steps even closer to me and, after another momentary hesitation, lowers his mouth to meet mine. At first, I think it's just going to be the usual sort of brief peck we leave on each other's cheeks but it continues. We're connected without movement for a few seconds, but the sensation is exhilarating. And then, his lips move slowly but confidently to caress mine affectionately.

When he finally pulls away, I'm breathless.

"That was…" I manage to speak through my pleasant surprise. "That was my first kiss."

"Oh," his eyes widen. "Andy, you should have told me. I wouldn't want to take that from you. I'm so-"

"You didn't _take_ anything," I correct. "I gave it. I wanted you to have it."

He's still holding both of my hands and he squeezes them now in a protective sort of way that is sweet but unnecessary and he says, "I'm _honored_."

I elect to ruin our sentimental moment with a sort of out-of-character flirtatious comment. "Would you like to have my second kiss as well?"

"Yes," he plays along. "_And_ your third."

I giggle and his nervous returns. "If that's not too presumptuous of me," he adds hastily.

"It isn't," I smile. "Happy birthday."

He drops my hands and wraps his arms around my waist instead. "You're extraordinary," he whispers against my ear. "Do you know that?"

I think I might actually shed some tears of joy. No one who knows both Bella and me has ever used that term to describe _me_. There are so many things I want to say, but all I manage is, "Thank you."

* * *

(A/N: Ha ha! Eat your heart out, Ted Tonks! You guys have no idea how tempted I am to make this an AU and just let Roddy and Andy be happy. But I can't do that… A conversation with Xx starlight-moon xX gave me the "doll" idea. Sorry it's taken so long to update but this chapter was almost 1000 words longer than the last one… Reviews for me? Please? Oh, and the first person to tell me which other story I used Jolly the house elf in gets a short one-shot with the pairing of their choice. Love. –Lia.)


	5. Unlike Most Spoiled Teenagers

Rodolphus

The morning after my birthday party, I'm left with mixed feelings. Mostly, they concern my relationship with Andromeda. At this point in my life, is it what I want? Am I ready for it? Is she? I'm not exactly having second thoughts and I definitely do not regret the kiss, but…

All the same, I hadn't considered how innocent she was. I know by reputation, or at least, by rumor, what Bellatrix was doing at her age, and then there's my own situation... Two years age difference between us should not be such a big deal… but it is. Right now, her biggest concern should be her friends and schoolwork. Mine, as much as I resent and dread it, is what life after Hogwarts is going to mean.

_Marriage? A place in society? Some kind of career path? _

Of course, I have another whole year of school to finalize those plans. But that's going to be time focused mainly on my NEWTS. My ex-girlfriend confirmed that the exams are next to impossible.

I sigh. I don't want to think about her _or_ about the final exams right now. I'd rather think about Andy. I meant every word I told her. She is indeed extraordinary. Being with her, talking to her, and kissing her- four times last night –just feels right somehow. This is the closest I've ever been to what I imagine love feels like.

I dismiss that thought with a yawn, not because I've lost interest, but because my body understands my daily ritual better than my mind does, and it isn't so easily distracted by emotions. _Morning means breakfast_. Sometimes I'm so primitive I even surprise myself.

I have a number of house elves at my disposal, but unlike most spoiled teenagers, I don't usually assign them simple tasks I could accomplish myself. Cooking is the exception, it shouldn't be that difficult, it's just one field I've never bothered with. I can make most potions almost perfectly, but, sadly, most food recipes would bemuse me. That's too bad, really. Maybe I should have learned or at least attempted it, but, with everything else I have to deal with now, I'm not about to make culinary lessons an immediate priority.

Entering the smaller of our two dining rooms, I'm not surprised to see that no family members are joining me. We usually keep to ourselves aside from the biweekly family dinners my mother mandated during summers and school holidays. What I _am_ surprised to find is Bellatrix.

She's sitting at one end of the table, resting her left elbow on the table and her forehead against her hand, and staring blankly at a coffee mug in front of her, oblivious to my presence.

I clear my throat. "Um… hi."

Bellatrix startles but recovers quickly. She takes her arm off the table and rests her hands in her lap instead. She sits up straighter and smiles. "Lestrange," she murmurs, acknowledging me after a momentary pause.

"I'm _Rodolphus_," I assure her, holding up both hands in the international gesture for _'Stop, don't touch me'_ just in case she's got me confused with my brother again.

She rolls her eyes, "I know who you are. We met at my family's midsummer party, remember?"

Of course I remember. Some memories of that night are pleasant- meeting Andromeda, for instance –but others are just awkward and even unpleasant. But I also remember something else, something Bellatrix seems to have forgotten. Smirking mentally, I respond with, "No, we didn't."

"What? Yes, we did. I kissed you; remember that? In the library?"

"No," I retort coolly. "You didn't."

She frowns just for a moment before her infamous temper surfaces. "You're an idiot! Do you have any idea what-"

I cut her off before she can officially begin what I'm sure would be a rather dramatic and insulting- if somewhat amusing -monologue. "_It never happened_. Do you remember _that_?"

She scowls. "Just how stupid are you? I just meant you couldn't tell anybody, I didn't mean you should forget the incident entirely."

"How am I supposed to know how your rules work, Bellatrix?" I snap. "You threatened to erase my memory after the kiss anyway, it kind of contradicts what you're saying now."

"I did?" There isn't a hint of sarcasm in the question; it's genuine enough to worry me. "Well," she reasons. "I was drunk at the time…"

"That's your defense?" I challenge, glancing from her annoyed expression to her cup. "And speaking of which… what are you drinking now?"

"Coffee," she admits flatly.

"Really?" I press, calming down a little bit.

"Yes, really. It's too early for anything else. I know what you're implying, by the way, but, if you so much as mention fire whiskey or any other alcoholic beverage, I will vomit all over you." Her tone remains flat. I honestly have no idea if her last sentence is a joke or a warning.

I sigh and take the seat to her left. "You drank too much last night?"

"I was bored out of my mind," she whines, another irrational justification. "And your stupid brother never showed up."

Rabastan wasn't at the party? I should have noticed his absence, but I was preoccupied at first by my parents' compulsion to show off and then by Andromeda for obvious reasons.

I resolve to ask Rabastan about it later, after all, it is possible Bellatrix just didn't see him there. I don't want to listen to her complaints now, at any rate, so I change the subject. "Are you feeling okay?"

"Yes. The elf gave me a Pepperup Potion and some kind of painkiller."

"Good," I comment, although I only heard one word she said there. _Yes, Idiot_, my stomach reminds me. _Elf means food_. Having that resolved, I call my favorite house elf. "_Jolly_!"

He appears a moment later, murmuring some humble greetings that Bellatrix and I ignore. He guesses, correctly, that I want breakfast. I request toast with scrambled eggs and sausage. Although neither of us offered her anything, Bellatrix demands the same.

She snickers when Jolly disapparates.

"What?" I demand.

"You said 'please.'"

"Yes, I did, and then I asked him to make us food. What's your point?"

She ignores my question and, instead, challenges another word. "'Him?'… Don't speak like it's an equal. Are you not a superior being, Lestrange?"

I'm tempted to argue that she was polite enough to wait until the elf was gone to bring up this point. But I don't, I'm not in the mood to have this argument with her right now. Instead, I resort back to my original question, the one I ignored in favor of picking a small hunger-induced fight with her. "What are you doing here, Bellatrix?"

She glares at me for a short time. I count ten full seconds before she speaks, "I'm waiting for Lestrange."

I raise an eyebrow before I realize she means Rabastan. "You're meeting him here?" I ask. "Do you two have plans today?"

"He was supposed to meet me at the party last night." She's still scowling. "And I am still waiting for him."

"You mean you stayed here overnight? In his room?"

"In one of your guestrooms," she corrects. I frown. "You have like ten of them, no one even noticed me."

"Why didn't you just go home? I mean, if you couldn't find him…" Bellatrix's glare now has a threatening edge to it. "Or if he wasn't there," I concede. "You could have just…"

"There you go, being stupid again." She rolls her eyes, preparing to explain her '_logic'_ for me. "If I keep waiting, then, when he does show up, I can tell him just how long he kept me waiting and I can make him suffer for it."

"Oh," I nod, not understanding, but not caring either.

"So…" It's Bellatrix's turn to change the subject. "How did it go with you and my sister last night?"

I make a small, non-committal noise and lean back in my chair. "Andy can tell you if she wants to," I murmur, conjuring a glass of pumpkin juice for myself. "But I'm not sure I feel like-"

"You can tell me, Lestrange. I'm the reason you're sleeping together after all, you owe me some details."

I strive unsuccessfully to make sense of that. "You're the reason we're… we're sleeping together?" _That's news to me. _

"You're not?"

"No. Did you hear a rumor or something that said we were?"

"I just assumed. Oh well," she shrugs, takes a sip of her coffee, and then waves dismissively. "What did happen, then?"

"We kissed."

"Really?" She inquires, obviously unimpressed.

"It was her first."

"How sweet."

"It was sweet," I end up sounding more defensive than genuine. "Do you remember your first kiss, Bellatrix?"

"Of course I do," she answers after a momentary hesitation.

"Was it sweet?" I inquire with a spiteful tone I rarely use.

Bellatrix frowns. She doesn't like me turning the tables, now that she's the one being teased and interrogated. "It was… significant."

I'm not asking her to elaborate. Silence falls between us and that might be a good thing. I take casual sips of pumpkin juice and she stares at the fingernails of her left hand as if her French manicure is suddenly much more interesting than I am.

I'm actually relieved when the door opens, but then shocked all over again to see who the newcomer is.

"Rabastan!" Bellatrix and I exclaim in unison. She's distracted enough to forget that she usually calls both of us by our surname.

My brother ignores me and turns his attention to Bellatrix instead. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Clearly, that's not the greeting Bellatrix was expecting. She leaps to her feet, eyes glaring furiously, and mouth open in preparation to scream something, but no words escape her. She closes it and slaps her palm against the table, doing more damage to her hand than the furniture, and obviously not feeling any better. "I was waiting for you," she answers finally. Her voice is barely above a whisper, but her words and the emotions behind them are heard.

"What?" Rabastan's confusion is as obvious as my own.

"The _party_, Lestrange," Bellatrix growls, maintaining her low volume but not calming down at all. "The party last night, you were supposed to be there. You promised… I waited for you."

"And you're still here now because…" he prompts unapologetically.

"Because, I kept waiting," she glances at the grandfather clock in the corner of the room. "The party started at eight last night, and it's nine o'clock now. Twelve hours-"

"_Thirteen_ hours," I interject the correction instinctively before I can stop myself. It's an elementary mistake, one you would expect from a child just learning to tell time, but not from a seventeen-year-old who passed the Arithmancy OWL.

Rabastan's annoyed glare switches its focus from Bellatrix to me. I mouth _'sorry'_ and contemplate leaving the room to let them finish their argument in peace.

"Thirteen hours," Bellatrix repeats, nodding to me like she thinks my voicing the mathematical correction is an indication that I'm on her side. "See how _faithful_ I am?"

"Merlin, Black!" Rabastan shakes his head as if exasperated. "I never thought you'd be the kind of person to have issues with separation anxiety."

"Don't flatter yourself," she counters, stepping closer to him. "I waited because I thought you might appreciate that promises mean something to me. I don't need you, but, if you tell me you're going to do something, then I expect you to do it." Rabastan retorts and I just know they're going to fight.

I stand up, preparing to leave the room, but that's the moment Jolly chooses to appear with breakfast. He looks at the scene apprehensively: my awkward stance and Bellatrix and Rabastan's heated argument, now so loud and emotional that neither of them notice the elf. I sit back down and Jolly sets one plate in front of me and another where Bellatrix was sitting a minute ago. I nod to dismiss him.

"You honestly believe it's all about you and-" Rabastan is saying, but Bellatrix interrupts him with, "Shut up! I hate you!" And, with that, she storms out of the room. Rabastan shrugs apathetically and turns his attention back to me.

"Aren't you going to follow her?" I inquire. "She said she hated you."

He shakes his head, "She says that all the time… Oh, good, I'm starving." The two sentences don't match up or make sense at all until I realize the second part is actually his delayed reaction to the food. He takes the seat Bellatrix vacated and I roll my eyes, picking at my own breakfast.

"Where were you last night?" I can't stop myself from asking.

"Nowhere," he responds unhelpfully.

"You have to have been somewhere."

"Just… something I had to do, okay?"

"So," I persist, smirking. "You were somewhere, doing something, is that right?"

"Ha," he mutters with a single sarcastic note of laughter. "Very funny."

"Seriously, though, why weren't you at the party?"

"Why do you care?" He counters defensively.

"Because it was my party," I improvise.

"You hate parties!" He argues. Then he changes the subject before I have a chance to object. "Jolly knows I prefer bacon and fried eggs, why did-"

"Jolly had no idea when you were coming back, not anymore than Bellatrix and I did," I interrupt. "That food wasn't for you, it's what she ordered."

"Hmm, well, that explains why the coffee is too sweet. You know how much sugar she uses?"

"No idea," I frown. I'm not really hungry anymore. I push my plate away and stand. Rabastan asks if I'm finished eating, but he's already scraping the remains from my plate onto his own before he finishes verbalizing the question. "Yeah," I react with some combination of amusement and resentfulness. "See you later."

"You don't have to go," he says, having waited until I was almost at the door before calling after me. I glare at him expectantly and he sighs, "I guess I should tell _somebody_… can you keep a secret?"

I sigh too and return to my seat. I snatch a piece of toast off his plate, and nod. I think I was ten years old the last time he told me anything worth safeguarding. I'm worried.

* * *

(A/N: Yes, I know, this is a terrible stopping place. The chapter was getting too long so what wasn't resolved here will come into play in the next chapter. No Andromeda in this one, just like we will have a Ted/Dromeda chapter later on without Rod, sorry but I need to begin building the angst behind the canon pairings. My email system is giving me problems today so review replies may be later than usual. Elaine, this is also why I haven't sent you the chapters of "What Chance" yet, sorry. xoxLewrahxox beta read this, she's awesome. Review, please. I love you.)


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